The World Game with Stefan MaukFrom the A-Leagues to the EPL, Adelaide United star Stefan Mauk brings you the latest results, news and analysis from the World Game.
This is the World Game with Stephan Mork thanks to Football Essay bringing South Australian communities together.
Seven minutes after six on this Thursday night, getting sent for a huge, huge Friday tomorrow for Adelaide United particularly, but we've got lots to cover off as we go through it all.
You can cherry pick.
Your own to go four pro from Southern cherry Morpha Vale from just twenty three nine to ninety drive away. Stephan Mork is our man. But as we know he is on Judy, he is in Melbourne. He's got a huge task as Adelaide United face off in an elimination final against Western United tomorrow night. So what we thought we'd do is we get the man on Judy from his hotel room in Melbourne.
Stephan Mork, have you got us I do? Can you hear me loud and clear? Mate? Great to have you on the show tonight. You're on the road.
What an evening for you as you prepare for a really great opportunity to keep the season going.
Yeah, well, obviously it's been nice to be in the new studios there, but I guess being here for finals probably is a little bit better anyway.
And it's great that we're able to do the live show.
So technology has come a long way, obviously, and this is the beauty of it, isn't it.
I'm excited for it, mate.
So there's lots to cover off and we'll speak to Ben Garuccio a little later on one of your good friends as well. And there's lots to cover off in the Champions League, the NPL locally too, and how women's reads will talk about them in their semi final series right now, but let's touch right on your situation over there in Melbourne, the teams together, it's twenty four hours out from taking the field and you have your season still alive. We talked about it last week and how incredible it's somehow is to still be alive in this a league season after what's been the last few months, pretty tumultuous for the club.
Carlvier gets to lead you out one more time.
Yeah, it has been crazy, to be honest, and I think the best part of it is now, like whatever happened in the league, it's irrelevant once you get finals. It doesn't matter if you finished first or sixth. It's the last man's standing now. So we understand that finals is a different game. We put an elimination final against Western United. If we win that then we play Auckland in a two legged semi but we're really focused just on Western. Going back to last weekend, we were as a team watching Sydney FC against Melbourne City.
Had pretty much every player.
From the squad there, so it was I think, you know, it's not the way I would have wanted the season to finish, going back thirteen weeks when we were.
Sitting second or top.
But I think the disappointment of the results in the next thirteen weeks has kind of galvanizes us to come together understand what we needed to work on, and it's probably shown how tight of a group we are, because you know, if people didn't want to make finals and they didn't like the coach or they didn't like the club, we wouldn't have all rocked up last week to watch the game at ES's house.
So I'm so excited. I've been pumped all week.
Even the disappointment of Arsenal losing this morning hasn't why the smile off my face.
I just can't wait to get out there tomorrow night.
I do want to ask you we'll leave Arsenal for a little later. That's the bad news to show. But I do want to ask you about ISAS's house last weekend.
On the Saturday, you got the whole team.
Together, Like, what was that sort of night like for especially is the Melbourne City just piled on the goals?
Well, yeah, we.
Got there a bit earlier, few of us and.
Yeah we're kind of I wore Melbourne Melbourne City shirt. I brought a few extras for some other boys. Drickley also played for Melbourne City.
He had on. So it was it was good. It was good fun at the.
Start, and then the game, the game begins, and then you get a little bit nervous, you know, because obviously you understand, okay, like whatever happens here, he's going to dictate our plans for literally on Monday, whether we're training or whether we're having a mad Monday. And to see the first goal go in was obviously great. Then the second and the third, and then you're thinking, I was taking some videos and photos and I'm saying to the boys, come on, surely three noil, I can put it up now, show that we're celebrating.
They're like, no, no, don't jink, sit don't jink.
So I think it went for four nil potentially, and I said, nah.
I don't care what you boys say. I'm putting this up. They're not coming back.
Then it went for to one and I was like, oh no, oh no, what's what's happening here. They had a few chances after that, and if it went for too it was too late. People have already seen the stories. But I was thinking, man, I hope I haven't jinxd us here. I don't even believe in that, but I was thinking, surely not. So they ended up winning comfortably in Melbourne City and it didn't look like Sydney was going to score. But when you're you've got so much on the line and it's not in your control, you're quite nervous. And then the game finished, a few of the boys said all right, if we go back home, and then a few of us stayed around and watched Western United's game to finish, and then the MacArthur Western Sydney game.
So I was a I guess a good team bonding exercise.
And the training week was the best it's been in a long time. I think, you know, it's just normal when you've got this motivation for for finals. Understanding it's an elimination final, so everything is on the line. It's going to be a different game. And yeah, maybe it's a good thing that it's away from home as well. There's less pressure on us. Nobody's kind of expecting anything from us. The only people are probably you know, within the four walls of the club. We expect a lot from each other. So yeah, we're very, very excited.
So in that scene, and as you said before, you wouldn't have liked to have ended the season the way you did, but you're so pumped because you've had that sort of rebirth on the weekend of a new lease of life. So for you, what's the morale like, what's it been like all the way through the week?
Is it a feeling of just nothing to lose?
Yeah, pretty much like we.
I think the table I've said it plenty of times on this show, is that the table doesn't lie.
So people can say, you know, with.
Steven bradburied our way into the finals and you know us and Sydney, none of us deserved in. But at the end of the day, the top six make finals. Everybody knows that at the start of the season we finished six because we deserve to finish six because us start of the season was so strong and now we go into a position where any team can win from here. If you win this elimination final, same with the other one with Western Sydney and Melbourne victory, you then go into a two leged semi final. There's no real advantage for the teams that came first and second. Besides they play at home second, so if it goes to extra time or penalties, there's a little bit on their side. But you know, you win this game first, you got to do that. Then it's open. It's open game for everyone, and I think that's what makes it exciting. And teams have won up from six to before, fifth, fourth, whatever position, so we believe, you know, we're good enough three games away from a grand final. The most frustrating part is that we don't get a home grand final. That's impossible because we're the lowest ranked team. But we don't care any anywhere, anytime. We will play anyone and that starts tomorrow night at seven oh five Adelaide time in Tarnet. Here it'll be nice and cold, perfect conditions, so I'm really excited, all right.
Well, review then the A League first weekend of finals, the two elimination finals, one Tomorrow night and one Saturday night, and of course Western Sydney up against Melbourne Victory on the Saturday night. But it's your game that we're focused on at the moment in the Reds in Western United, So feel free to go through it however you like, as broadly as you like. I know you're involved in one of the games, but this is your program, so let's get stuck in with the two elimination finals.
Yeah.
Firstly, I guess you've got Western United who probably outperformed everybody's expectations of them. They had a really young squad, they lost a lot of their experienced players John, and we see the last few seasons had finished, you know, the bottom couple of positions. There was a lot of kind of turmoil around their ownership Bottle who was earning the club different things, and that still was happening throughout the season. But I think he's got them playing a really attractive brand of football and I think playing the younger players has really kind of excited their fans. And even for John, he's probably not someone that has played a young square like this before because he's always had the experience, but you know they've done some some top talent in you know, Dylan Leonard at the back, the center back has been unbelievable, Bosumovsky in midfield, third Gate who's been around for a while now, but it's really kicked on. And then up top Noah Bottich has learned of our old player Hiroshi Ibasuki.
So they're they're a really well balanced side.
They're maybe more direct than other teams in the league in a four or two with the two strikers up top.
But I think, you know, we we understand, you know.
What their qualities are. That you don't finish third like they did if you don't have quality. It's just about limiting that. And for us, we know our best football matches up against you know, any team. We beat them earlier in the season and we lost to them away. So I think the conditions in that last game against them, it was very windy the sun coming in with that stadium was very difficult and they've kind of made that a fortress.
But this is a night game, so check the weather.
There's no wind, so that's great, perfect night. It'll be nice and cold, eight nine degrees. I think it is down there in Tarnet, so the pitch will be slick, and yeah, I think it's going to be a very tight game.
I would be tipping it to not be high scoring. I think that's just the.
Way finals goes, and especially with the way.
You know Western United are and asked. I think this will be a very cagey affair, you could.
Say, and a lot of winning second balls, kind of that desperation, that type of defending I think will be on show. So hopefully we're the ones that want it more and we walk away at the end of the game. And then on the other side of it, the elimination final between.
Western Sydney and Melbourne victory, I can't wait. I hope. I'm sitting up with my feed up on the.
Couch preparing for a home semi final against Auckland on Friday, watching this one and not you know, crying, crying myself to sleep, probably on the couch after we've lost. But Western Sydney victory this game I think could be a very high scoring game, probably the complete opposite because of the types of players both teams have and Western Sydney are on a I think it's a twelve game unbeaten run I believe I could even be thirteen now. They've been the most informed team in the competition. In the back half. Their attacking threat is off the charts with Burrello, Milanovitch, Kraev Sapsford's been playing a lot. And then off the bench you've got an Thomson Hamond, a young Boyjan Mata who has hardly featured, but to have that depth on the bench is extraordinary and I think playing at home in front of that crowd.
They're probably.
I would say the best active support in the league when they're going. They've been very disappointing for five or six years because they've been struggling as a club. Now they've all jumped on. I think the RBB their active support is sold out. This will be you know, twenty twenty five, probably closer to thirty thousand people. Hopefully it sells out and I think that is what will get them across the line. But in saying that, you look across to Melbourne Victory and their front line as well is so dangerous. You've got Virgos up top who's hit a bit of form recently with some goals, and then on the wings you've got Valufala, Azania Sokaru. Both have really hit their straps since they actually got called back into the soccer US where a lot of people saying they didn't deserve it, since they actually played for them, they've been scoring for fun, assisting each other. And then just behind them, you've got mccutch, who's you know, a top player, Ryan Teague as well. And then on their bench, you know, you've got Batlado. He's actually on loan from Western Sydney, so I'm not sure if he's allowed to play in this one because sometimes there's rules around that. But you've got Fauner only on the bench, You've got Piscopo. There's so much attacking talent. I think that game could be a five to four. Yeah, I think it has. It has the riding there to be something like that, just because both teams they just want to score, they want to attack, and they've got the individual talent to score from anything.
So I'm really really excited for that one.
And then the winners of those games obviously aren't really determined until our Friday night game. So if we win, we play Auckland in the next round because we're the lowest ranked team. But if Western United win then they play Melbourne City and then Western Sydney or Victory would play Auckland and vice versa. So you kind of know what way you're going in the route to the I guess to winning the grand Final. But I'm sure all four teams, ourselves included, are really just focused on the first elimination final because if you lose that, well it doesn't matter what your path was because you're a yeah, you're irrelevant.
Now. Yeah, well we're glad.
We've even got one more game to go, so it's exciting. It's all coming up tomorrow and saturllite and then just speaking of as well, the women's Reads have got their semi final Second League coming up against the Victory went down in the first one unfortunately at home, so it's a bit of an uphill battle as finals continue for Adelaide United.
Yeah, it was.
It was such a majority of the players again, the boys went to go and support the girls play, and you know it was I thought it was such a good performance from them.
They went behind one kneel and then they scored straight away.
The crab was up and about and everything in the game was very very even shots.
I think fifteen to sixteen possession.
We were, you know, had a little bit more possession, but the one area where.
We struggled, they had nine corners to our two.
But it was just they looked physically superior to us, and their delivery was great into the box, and they scored off two set pieces. And as frustrating as that is, that's sometimes, especially in finals, how games have decided, these small little moments.
And fingers crossed.
I guess the girls are in a simil pleasant position to us now where they've got nothing to lose. Everyone's expecting Victory to win that game and go into the Grand Final, but the.
Girls have nothing to lose.
If they can get that first goal, then Victory get very nervous all of a sudden. So you know, I think a big game from Fiona Warts and Aaron Heay can really get the girls over the line. So make sure I guess you're tuning into those both those games. But it's a great weekend if you haven't decided and you can somehow get work off tomorrow to drive up to watch our game Friday night, stick around to watch the girls on Saturday, and drive back Sunday.
It's not a not a bad weekend in Melbourne.
No, I like the sound of that. We'll make your last minute planes and get it done. Hey, Stephan will take a quick break because very shortly being Garuco is going to join us on the line.
You guys are good mate, so I'm looking forward to this chat. It could be a bit of fun here.
At twenty one minutes after six you're listening to the World Game all thanks to Southern Cherry More Vale Week and Cherry Pick your Own to Go four pro for just twenty three nine to ninety drive away coming back next more time for your calls as well if you want to get involved a double two to three double O double.
O the World Game with Stephan Mook on five double A.
We have a remote Stephan Mook who's over in Melbourne ahead of tomorrow night's elimination final against Western United. But right now it's time to welcome in our next geese because it's been an exciting weekend of course for us, but this is exciting for Ben Garuccio, who joins us on the line will be featuring as well in the very same game.
Ben.
Thanks for joining us, Hey, guys, thank you very much for having me.
Well, it's great to have you on the line, Ben, and firstly, congratulations on making finals. It's a great achievement obviously your first year being captain. And I guess the question we want to know is what are the tactics for tomorrow night.
I'll keep those ones close to my chest for now, but looking forward, looking forward to the game, it's obviously it's going to be a good one. Obviously the final series is always exciting, but even more steel to the fire, I guess with the old football friends Derby first up.
Yeah, no, it's going to be exciting.
And obviously I was down at Tarney.
What was it two weeks back now, supporting you against Sydney FC.
You guys did us a favor.
As I was waiting there to say congrats to you and tell you to hurry up so you could take me home because it was freezing there that night John Alowis's walk past and I said, thanks so much, You've done us a favor and I'm just yeah, I feel bad now that you boys did us that big favor and now we're going to have to come to your ground and knock you out of the final series.
We'll see I suppose we'll see because you were given it the big ones as well against the Champions League final, hanging a hat on Affen and winning a trophy, and now they're bombed out of that as well. So yeah, just don't speak too soon.
Yeah, yeah, so it's very true.
And I guess for you recently there's been a little bit of turmoil around the club with you know, there's been rumors of late payments and certain things, getting banned from signing players. You've now got a new ownership group coming in. What's that been like because it hasn't really been too much said about it, and I guess you guys are just focusing on the final series and maybe they'll come out at the end.
Of the season.
But what's that been like for you as a playing group and probably everyone involved in the club to have that I guess assurance now that you know that you know the club's in the moving in a positive direction. Yeah.
I think it's look that there was a lot of work going on behind the scenes for probably the past twelve months at the club with the change of ownership, and they were looking for the right group to come in and they wanted people that were going to be football focused and wanted to try and build a little bit of an empire within football, but also within the property side as well, which is what the club's kind of been built on. Is this big property that's available in Tianese that they've obviously got, and they've got big plans to a stadium as well. So I think the fit was perfect and that's what they were waiting for, and that's why this process of the handover has been a little bit tricky. But now that it's all done, it's been really good. I actually met the.
Guy today, he flew down from America, so he's here for the game tomorrow. It's to be great. And yeah, it's obviously good for the club to now have this this backing and hopefully they can get this, you know, all the residential stuff out of the way, and also the stadium as well, which is obviously something that those club was built upon.
Yeah, no, for sure, And you're coming off con tracked.
Is there any chance of Groucha moving back to the Reds.
Not at this stage.
I'm really happy here.
It's obviously been probably the best part of my career that I've spent here with Western United, So I'm hoping to have that all.
Sorted very soon, but at the moment obviously just fully focused on finals and we've put ourselves in a great position with the home final first up against you boys, and hopefully we can get through that one.
And yeah, it'll be a massive finals series.
For us, yeah for sure.
And obviously I think you're always welcome back here at the Reds. It would be great, great if we did end up playing with each other one more time before we finish. But yeah, it's going to be a great game tomorrow. Obviously. I think you guys have been very strong and we've kind of got nothing to lose, so fingers crossed. It's a great game for all the Neutrals and then for all the Adelaide contingent fans watching in obviously that Adelaide United to get up.
But good luck for the game. I once you after this.
This is the last point of contact before we walk out there onto the field and we're going at it, So I appreciate you jumping on.
No, I no worries to make sure you're ready for tomorrow night.
I love the band between you two and football friends as well. Ben Garuccio and Stephan Mark in the same place, and a podcast is a good place to go as well if you want to listen to all things in the world of soccer. So before we go any further, I do need to remind you Stephan, unfortunately the bad news that has happened this week and it means Arsenal is out of the way for Champions League. So this was a really pretty heartbreaking moment for you because you're building up to go to Germany for the final yourself.
I guess this is the one headache that I'm not going to have to worry about now is getting tickets to the game and if we make the Grand Final somehow getting there a day later.
But I would have loved to have had that headache, I think, you know, looking at it, you know.
I think a lot of fans are emotional, as you know we've spoken about before, we fans getting emotional with players, whether it's different sports and yelling stuff at him and sending messages. I think I'm a pretty rational fan. In the moment, I do get quite upset, but you know, the club has built themselves each year and yes, coming second you get nothing for it.
I completely understand that.
But the amount of injuries they had this season and in this game alone, you know Dona Ruema, the keeper for PSG, he was man of the match both games. He was you know, the great Wall of Paris. And we just need to keep building as a club to I guess, to sign players to make sure we can go that next step. And PSG, I love the way they've gone about it.
They've kind of gotten.
Rid of the star players for the last six or seven years that had him but a Nama MESSI. They've gone down that path of trying to get the star that will get him the success.
Then Ballet is a big player, but he's not the same level.
They've kind of gone for more quality, quality all around the field and maybe a better team. And the way they plays is unbelievable. And Lewis Enrique a coach. I love watching him play and I love I love watching him what he what he talks about. And he lost his daughter a few years back, and the videos that have come about him talking about just how grateful he was to spend the time with her, and he's just so passionate about it and everything that I think he says, like, I just love I love his story. So I am very very happy for him without personally knowing him, he just seems like a great coach and I hope they can get the job done against into Milan because they've been the best team throughout.
The tournament, well spoken in the end. So it is PSG into Milan.
It'll be the final Sunday, June one at about four thirty am, so just mark that new calendar. It's a month away, but it'll be well worth the weight. And just speaking of that, Into Malam Barcelona series a very high scoring seven to six aggregate.
Pretty crazy, I tell you why.
It's almost higher scoring than what was a Freo and Saint Kilda last Friday or first day night, to be honest, So it was. It was a crazy game and to be honest, there could have been way more goals it was.
I wish it could have been.
Barcelona against PSG in that final because that could have been eight to seven written like ridiculous the way those teams both play.
But you know, Barcelona play a.
Very high risk game and they're susceptible to conceive goals. Into Milan. You know they've been coached extremely well typical Italians, where they're tactically on point and and you know what they deserve at the end of the day. They scored one extra goal, but they managed the game better. And you know, going into that, I think there this is their second final maybe in four years, so it's you know, they're a team that's been up there without spending a lot of money, and you've got to kind of give that club a lot of plaudits for for everything they've done right, And yeah, it's going to be It's going to be a very interesting tactical battle in the final.
No question about it. Okay in PLSA, let's get local quickly. Match Day nine starts tomorrow night.
It doesn't, And probably the big game there is Adelaide's CITV Campbelltown and Campbelltown who were in all sorts going into this last game against Adelaide United. They then went one nick downs their goalkeeper to a red card, thinking this is curtains for them and instn it turned up the other way and they actually came back in one to one against all odds and maybe that is the game that they needed to kind of get the group together and show the defensive stability that they were lacking conceding so many goals. So I'm really excited to see that because Adelaide City are on top with Metro there and the Metro Stars against Comets as well is another big game. So plenty plenty of big games and it's kind of one of those seasons.
I think.
You know, there's there's not a whole lot between first and last, so you're if you're off your game, you're going to lose.
As you saw.
I think Kempbelltown was second last and maybe Adelaide United who were coming equal seconds. So very very interesting to see how those games go this weekend. And Football we Say have actually just also announced the big initiative today where they've partnered up with Variety Essay, the Children's charity to establish a football foundation aiming to support underprivileged children to participate and empower the beautiful games.
So they want to raise twenty grand.
Twenty grand is what they need and they've already got fourteen thousand. I don't know how they've done it that quickly, but I don't know if someone specifically is donated. Maybe was it you did you donate fourteen k today?
I chucked a couple of bucks, not fourteen k though, but really so.
I guess they want to reach the target.
They'll be donating a vehicle challenge, so six and a half thousand t round trip to the stunning Kimberly region this may as part of the Variety Foiled Truck w Adventure. This journey symbolizes our commitment to giving these kids the opportunity to participate in football. So every donation big or small, makes a massive difference and is a tax deductible ride off, So that's a bonus there. And if you do donate over two thousand dollars, they're actually going to give you some special recognition.
So maybe up to two dollars that you've put.
In an extra nineteen hundred and ninety eight more and you get.
A little bit of a recognition there.
That's pretty good. I love that.
Well, that's a great indiationive and we love Variety to say here on five Dobai as well. We do great things with them when they do even better things in the community. And so looking forward to Radiocon later in the year. But great by football essay to get involved a brilliant cause. Indeed, we have run out of time tonight though, Stephan, but tomorrow night it's all about you. So Western United, Adelaide United tune in if you can seven o'clock and get behind our reads and Steffan best of luck to you. Hopefully you can really put on a great show as a team and we can see your big winners coming back next week and we can have a big smile on your face once again.
One percent. I'm feeling very good. The boys are feeling good. So make sure you support us, whether it's from home or whether it's in the stands. Here and tiny, we definitely will feel that energy and you know we need all the support we can get.
I'll see you next Thursday.
We'll see you next Thursday. Good luck, mate,
